Boxing Days: Indian’s ‘Chinky’ Route to Olympic Glory

I had to smile when I read that. Kevin Mitchell, I imagine, is extrapolating stardom from Mary’s outstanding, near-magical career. After all, a malnourished, five-foot two woman surviving the threats and poverty of a pre-modern, battlefield life to win the World Boxing Championship five times is the stuff of sporty fairy tales.

He’s wrong.

Till four days ago, India didn’t know Mary Kom from pole vault. When the boxer from Manipur trains in Delhi, the common local assumption is that she’s an illegal Nepali immigrant, informally employed as a domestic help. Gendered harassment and ethnic jibes about her Mongoloid features are aided by the reassuring assumption of low socioeconomic class and a displaced, ‘foreigner’ status. In short, to many of her fellow citizens, Magnificent Mary is just another tiny poor immigrant woman, rootless and therefore utterly powerless, and can consequently be tossed about at will.

Oddly, though perhaps not surprisingly, Mary takes the harassment in her stride, and focuses on her harassers’ lack of geo-ethnic accuracy. Her chief response is corrective, not admonishary. “I tell them we are not Nepali, we are Manipuri, so don’t speak like that, this is very bad manners”, she says in an interviewe. In the face of blatant identity-based bullying and the gleeful othering of her ‘chinky’ peers, she asserts, “We are Indian. Ya, the face is different. But heart is Indian”.

Which is really sweet. It’s the sort of climactic sentence one wants to hear from an unlikely national hero. And if Mary impresses us further this Olympics, we shall certainly hail her as the triumph of Indian womanhood, doing her motherland proud in a truly Shaktiesque sport. But ‘India’ will have nothing to do with her victory.

If, however, she had quit the ring after the first year of boxing on a rice-and-vegetable diet, without proper shoes, clothes, equipment or coaches, India would have had everything to with it. The Indian state compels Mary to live a difficult life in a difficult terrain, without electricity, much personal security or enough food on the table, but with a surfeit of armed personnel who frequently use the locals as their personal entertainment. It is why Mary’s family has to find time to grow their own food, keep livestock, and cook over wood-fire. ‘India’ is the reason fellow-Manipuri Irom Sharmila holds the record for the world’s longest hunger striker, and why Kom’s friends and neighbours might feature in a gang-rape or be splattered on the streets tomorrow.

If Kom wins today, Indians will celebrate the victory as their own. But there will be nothing Indian in Kom’s victory, except the tricolour on her vest that allows her a viable label to compete in the Olympics. And some people from her state might feel that even that is too much.

Beautifully written, Rimi. I lived in the N-Eeast for sometime during my early days and experienced a sense of brutal discrimination (towards them) that ‘we’ have imbibed in our psyche. It is so natural for us to imagine them to be our ‘Sheylaam Memshaab’-speaking folks who we believe, can have no other expertise other than utter those two words. From that. To this. Mary’s journey (irrespective of the colour of the medal) is unbelievable. There has been brutal and blatant discrimination against them (by us) all along. Sincere thanks as well to some incredible people like Arijit, who for years have been highlighting things which we ‘don’t want to see’ (I was with him last year in London when he presented the topics to a much-needed wider elite audience).

“The Indian state compels Mary to live a difficult life in a difficult terrain, without electricity, much personal security or enough food on the table, but with a surfeit of armed personnel who frequently use the locals as their personal entertainment…”

loved , loved, loved this article! thanks a tonne Rimi :) It’s blatant hypocrisy how ‘we’ (the ‘Indians’) are now going all ecstatic about her ‘Olympian’ achievement… whereas ‘India’ (and ‘Indians’) at large have otherwise conveniently forgotten that there EVEN EXISTS a state called Manipur…

Thank you Parjanya. Sports can be the one route to success for members of marginalised groups — African Americans in the US come to mind — but Kom doesn’t even benefit from her unprecedented success. What can be more telling about her community’s place on our map, eh?

it’s not about giving up anything…and who are ‘we’ to give up anyway? and ‘North-East’ is not a ‘The Whole’… it is not a homogeneous, undifferentiated lump of land…’it’ consists of people as different in their customs/beliefs/way of life as N and S. India…

that is the problem isn’t it? that to the rest of ‘India’, ‘North-East’ is simply a lump of land inhabited by ‘Chinkys’ who are not worth too much of thought…and yet ‘they’ must be constantly tamed and protected, from ‘our’ own paranoia of a Burmese or a Chinese annexation…by the constant presence of the gun…such a joke really!!! :)

Mr Srinivasan u seem ignorant of present situation in the NE states.?Btw are you even aware of the total number of states in NE India?And btw do u know the name of any state other than Assam in the NE?

Mr. srinivasan
You are sch a moron. Yo dont deserve to be given heed to. A very simple example of giving importance to northeast people is that of not even taking the name of BIHU on national channels which is held at the same time of Mkar Sakranti, pongal, baisakhi, etc. All these are mentioned but not BIHU. The tolerance which these people show here in NE is exemplary. I have lived there for five yrs and travelled as well to know this. Stop considering them as second grade citizen and distribute the profits from natures bounty to the general public instead of a few north indian chamchas and you will see the diffeence.
Mohammed Ghaznavi Idris

Honestly and succinctly expressed, Rimi. And after looking at the picture in the papers today of Sunny Leone being greeted by fans in Calcutta, it is clear that Shakti has as many versions as we have mythological goddesses. Wonder which version will finally stand the test of time and… fandom.

not to forget the tweet by Amitabh bachhan congratulating Mary mentioning she’s from Assam….funny:)…i pity the schizophrenic old man. And i guess a certain ‘subramanian’ thinks going to Assam and doing voluntary reliefs will be as good as a solution to this marginalized and issues-ridden part of the country that comprises EIGHT different states with different cultures, people, different state names and their capitals….hehe….DID I ‘BABBLE’ TOO MUCH???

First of all, ‘kudos’ to the lady (Rimi) for bringing up this article…it shows the dark reality of India for its constant effort to undermine north-eastern states…I mean put aside ignorant people, even some educated dolt I came across still rate Nagaland to be a country…this is criminal…:@

The biggest achievement of Mary Kom is to make many Indians realize that the world thinks that Manipur is a part of their own. Their medal is our medal then… their problem is our problem. I hope this “babble” increases and becomes “chaos”… sensible people learn about AFSPA, Irom Chanu etc not only Mary Kom… only glimmer of hope is public opinion.

as Mary Kom rightly put : “We are Indian.Ya, the face is different.But the heart is Indian.” though at times it is very difficult to stay calm when racial slurs are thrown at us…i guess the respect for “our country” acts like a protective armour against any ignorant jabs by ignoramus fools. I for one, am looking forward to a day when N.E. people can walk through the streets of India without being considered as a spectacle by both adults and children…but i know its going to be a long wait.

=) i am not making random statements here, have observed it 1st hand plenty of times…my only wish there were more exceptions than not! its bad enough that adults stare…kids gleefully go -“ching chong” thank you very much!

Who do you think the children are learning from, Donee? Abhishek, knowing you, I am certain you don’t find people who look different from you a spectacle at all. But I’m equally certain you’ve noticed people who giggle and whisper when a North-Eastern person, or a East Asian tourist, or a white person walks by. My friend KO, who is Nigerian-English, can tell you how difficult it can be to live in a perfectly civilised country (Japan) if one looks significantly different from local population groups.

Not depressing at all. What’s a 5’2″ woman to do against a taller opponent who uses her longer limbs to hit Kom but stay out of reach herself? Kom’s still awesome. I accept this loss as the inevitability of biological inequity :P

In equity!! so are you saying we are inferior to you?? Bitch have you ever even qualified in any sport on a school or college level…?? When i meet ppl like u in real life i go EWWW!! Stay away from me. You are worse than a street prostitute.

It’s true that the north eastern states are much deprived. But just because Mary is from Manipur, and also from a poor family, that doesn’t mean she did not get any support from her motherland. For those who didn even know her name before her olympic bout, she has been awarded with Arjuna in 2004 and Padma Shree in 2006. And I don’t believe one can participate and win world championships five times without the country’s support. She was also the Indian Sportswoman of the Year in 2010. Criticizing your own country at every single opportunity is a way of flaunting one’s intellect, I don’t deny that, but that aside, let’s all take this opportunity to cheer Mary for her success.

A good riposte. How much of her Arjuna award money — about 5 lakhs when she received it, I think — did she actually end up receiving, do you know?

From your first and last name, you appear to be Bengali, so I will assume you speak the language and ask you another question: Are you familiar with the saying ‘Juto mere goru daan’? If you are, and you still insist that forcing people to grow up in a war zone without basic modern amenities or human rights, and then awarding some of them empty titles and fractions of prize money counts as state support, then I fear a rational and mutually respectful conversation between us can only be a distant possibility.

I would mourn the loss, but my expectations of logical discourse was lowered the instant I realised you equated p/matriotism with stupidity, and yet favoured the former over the latter. A country that can only be loved if one is brain dead is not worth loving.

I am not saying that our country’s attitude towards alleviating the problems of the north eastern regions is praiseworthy. The problems are there, but that’s not my point. What I could not agree with you is your saying that “there is nothing Indian about Kom’s victory”. The token money for Arjuna award might appear to be meagre, but what is more important is the recognition that she received from the government (and that also in her early 20’s, after 3 or 4 years she started boxing, which is not too bad). And without the support from the government , I don’t think it would be possible for her to take part in the championships, most of which were organized outside India (the first AIBA Boxing championship which she participated when she was 18, took place in US). I am in no way demeaning Mary’s achievements, I am just opposing the notion that the country did nothing for her. And not only Mary, there are other sports personalities from north east who are much revered and loved by the whole country (for instance bhaichung bhutia and sunil chhetri). It is true, if she was born in an affluent family in Delhi or Mumbai (not Kolkata, we know what politics Dada had to face), she would have faced much less obstacles in her path to glory. But that’s how legends are made, right? The unfortunate thing is that there are people, who grew up in India, with proper education and facilities, start believing that the country cannot be loved without being brain dead. With my patriotism or stupidity, it appears to me as no less a concern.

Now why, when you can be this rational and articulate, did you descend into the cheap and rather silly shot about p/matriotism being in opposition to intellect?

Look, Sayak. I think we would benefit from running the basic premise of my post by you again. Mary’s victory is not India’s victory, because Mary is from Manipur and the Indian state does not treat — and has never treated — Manipur and other N-E border states like they really belong to the union. The appalling violence that it casually inflicts on these states comes from exactly this stemotherly behaviour (as Jyoti Basu would say). Our North-Eastern states are battlegrounds and torture camps, you know this. Had we felt they were part of our body social, along with our body politic, we could not have done this.

But when a citizen from these states suddenly brings glory to the nation, we fall over each to take out ad polish the person’s ‘Indian’ credentials. We choose to completely forget what a parody our elected government had made of these credentials, how violently it had Othered these people.

Since you bring up state support so often, let us address that too. The state support is Mary’s right, Sayak. She hasn’t, of course, received what her East Asian and Western counterparts think of as state support, because officials and contractors siphon off most of the money. You’re suggesting, I think, that she should be grateful for whatever scraps she has received. Let me state my position unequivocally on this: She should not.

If that sounds like I’m trying to tell Mary what to think, let me rephrase: No athelete should be grateful for receiving little bits of what should be his or hers by right, simple because laws and norms being followed is such a rare anomaly in our country.

We’re brought up to be amazed if the police don’t extort or harass a victim trying to lodge an FIR, for example, or if a taxi driver kindly agrees to take us half the way at double the price. But just because it is the custom doesn not mean we should yessir it till kingdom come. Change is rather an attractive idea in this context, I think.

Priyanka, what I could gather, that you do not approve the idea of Indians (barring people from NE) getting over-emotional about Mary’s achievements . And that “Mary’s victory is not India’s victory”. But think about it, if now the rest of the country denies to celebrate Mary’s achievements, that would convey an even gorier secessionist message towards the people of NE. And in a way, that will defy one of the greater purposes of sport, which is to bring a sense of oneness among the people of a country.

And I obviously agree with you, that every benefit that Mary has received from her state is her right. If she should be grateful or not, that lies purely at her discretion. But in my opinion, a sense of gratitude enhances the feeling of belonging. If I consume the necessary resources for my upbringing and prosperity, inspite of the fact that I do that as my right, I should be thankful to my country for being in a position to grab the opportunities, which is also necessary for the urge to give something back to the society.

Priyanka, I do share your feelings about the marginalization of the people of NE, and the reluctance of our government to find sustainable solutions. But I think the problems in the NE and Mary’s success are two different stories. Today, if an Indian feels proud about Mary’s winning a medal, or the media projects it as creating history, we should not raise our eyebrows and consider that as fake. Because the seeds of change that you are hoping for, may well lie in those celebrations, which portray a somewhat anti-communal gesture. And at present, that is extremely important for the entire nation.

As Indians, we should certainly be proud of Mary. I know I am. I’m very happy you are too. What I object to is the trope of appropriating her success for the nation’s. She didn’t succeed because she’s Indian, which seems to be the sentiment driving many ‘fans’ on social media. She succeeded despite being a Manipuri in India. Do you see what I’m trying to say?

Your point about gratitude is actually a rather excellent one. A friend of mine was once telling me how his parents’ attitude towards the dole really bothered him, because instead of thinking of state welfare as a right to temporary relief, they see it as the right to be fed and clothed at the economy’s expense without contributing to it in any way.

Of course, the topic of welfare is very complicated and mired in much ethnic, class and racial controversy, but the reason I cannot conflate Mary’s situation with general gratitude for public facilities is because Mary didn’t get what she rightfully deserved, as a state athlete. If we show gratitude for scraps, we shall never get the full meal. It seems to me that you’re familiar with the sporting culture in India — can you honestly say that our athelete residents, training modules, equipment and diet are in any way sufficient for our needs?

About social justice coming out of national celebration, Sayak, you’re a more optimistic person than I am. The trend of celebrations like this a quick burst followed by quicker death. Quite soon, unless she involves herself in something the media chooses to highlight, I think Mary will pass into oblivion, and the AFSPA will continue to rule the N-E, this time with special aid from mining and related industries.

Well thought written article. Glad to see that you had the courage to call spade a spade.Kudos to Mary Kom for at least bringing north east into highlight even if it is for a few moment. Had she not been there i believe even this write up would not have existed. :)

“Had she not been there i believe even this write up would not have existed. :) ”

Not this precise one, perhaps, but I do take what some might call an unhealthy interest in India’s divisive politics. Those posts, if you are interested, are archived here: http://priyankanandy.com/tag/divided-india/:-)

well … as you said.. if she had not participated this write up would not have existed…. so thank Mary for participating and giving some dope to write about.. wonder where all these write ups were when she won 5 World championships? the brand value of Olympics i guess have more equity to write about and underline her back ground and makes nice reading in the process

Fucking superior bitch!! What have u achieved in your life?? Writing a blog post from home. Anyone can do that. You have spoiled the name and image of Bengalis in my eyes. The biggest red light district is in bengal. Im sure you must be from there only, with your attitude.

nicely written priyanka. but sad to see people having such a naive opinion on NE. sigh!! their parents wasted a lump sum of money educating (foolishly educated) these “brown niggas” (somebody quoted above), if people from NE are chinkis, the others are brown niggas for sure :)

Somehow, Dhiren, I don’t think “an eye for an eye” is the best approach here. Not everybody is like Zebra above, who will be shamed into realising his own racism. The reverse is what will probably happen in most cases. Do we really want to escalate violence?

exactly priyanka! eye for an eye is certainly not the best but sometimes situations may turn it the best end option. on a personal note i never support violence or racism for instant, i come from assam, i would always disagree to any kind of practical approach to these words, they are ugly wound inflicting words. and what i have noticed is that the people who always have such ugly opinions of NE, on one pretext they might have never visited any of these states [it is very rare to find such an opinion from people who have been there :) ], i am sure one single visit would change their views :) and for Mary, my respect and prayers!! nothing can compensate her. titles don’t feed, they look good only in words :) and yes i am not criticizing anyone.

My grandmother was from Assam :-) But in those days people in Bengal (specifically what is now Bangladesh) moved relatively easily between Assam and some parts of Tripua in the north, and Burma in the south. Now, Assam almost feels like a foreign land. Burma IS a foreign land. How the world has changed.

You fucking bitch!! Dont u know that the c word is racist and has been banned by the govt. All you bengalis are the same- arrogant idiotic insensitive pricks!! Bitch go to your dirty bengal and see what state its in. BTW mary kom is a bigger celebrity than you will ever be. Fucking wannabe auntyji!! have u seen your face in the mirror??

bitch im a girl. the fact that you assumed im a guy shows you are sexist, in addition to being a racist. India does not deserve great athletes like Mary Kom bcuz of racist people like you!! Also Im complaining to the govt about this artcile and the use of the c word. So you better take this article down. BTW Indian ppl like you are called cockroach and vermin abroad. if i wanted i too could write a blog post calling indians that but i wont bcuz im a 1000 times better person than you!! Get that in your effing head you pseudo Bengali intellectual. Also Bengal has the maximum number of abandoned widows in Banaras. Shows what hypocrites you guys are. Lol!!

To the very civil person above me, I’m going to do something I don’t usually indulge in, and feed a troll by offering an explanation.

Yes, I, as a North-eastern woman, assumed that you were a man, because most of the North Eastern women I know do not go around calling women “bitch” or “aunty”. Clearly I thought better of my gender and my region than I should have. Do accept my sincerest apologies.

Also, if one could suggest reading a blog post beyond the headline, one might, perhaps.. just perhaps, understand that what Priyanka is doing is commenting on the blind prejudices that form part of the systemic discrimination that Mary Kom (and the rest of the North East) is subject to, and not using a racist slur for Mary Kom.

The fact that Ms Kom says, “I am an Indian like you, only the appearance is slightly different” is an acknowledgment of *her* patriotism and refusal to judge the entire nation on the basis of such prejudices. It is *not* a defence/reiteration of such slurs.

It would be nice if we could engage in an argument without flinging regional/racist slurs left right and centre, but clearly the evidence indicates otherwise.

Do you know AB — yes, I read your post on skin colour and feminism :-) — I am fairly certain this very amusing chap IS a man. Qualitative analysis like this has a certain margin or error, of course, but the choice of target, gendered language, kind of abuse, and the hasty denial all fits into the misogynistic paradigm. You might be right yet :-)

Bitch im calling u a bitch bcuz ur one. its got nothing to do with gender. And i am a girl. Just bcuz India and esp Bengal is male dominated that doesnt mean ne is male dominated too. But you probably wouldnt understand these subtleties. And im a 1000 times more civilized than u!! The headline of this article clearly proves that. Now take this article down or ill have you jailed.

I’m quite ranty and militant when it comes to the North East and discrimination (ask Aishwarya S, she’s seen it for over 8 years now), but this is just.. terrible reading and comprehension skills. Anyway, if the government come calling to take down this post, let’s hope they at least read it through. ;)

priyanka, may be u r trying hard to brush the things under the carpet and do a cosmetic fine art work to cover up your mistakes, which graduated you to the honorary list of failed wannabe writers. but priyanka, i’ve followed the whole course of discussion or you call it the argument. now i want to comment here as a neutral entity. ur good will is well appreciated and acknowledged here, but at the same time u’ve ridiculed urself and ur potentials as so called a writer. first of all u need some serious homeworks to be done. art. 19 of constitution, from where ur liberty of freedom of speech and expression flow (dont be too proud to know) is known to all….but genuine are those people who better understand their duties and responsibilities rather than the rights. and u failed here also. further, for your loosely used “C” word can put into deep shit and u ve failed to understand here again. u r easily liable to be booked under section 153 A and B of indian penal code, do u realize that? u tried to be catchy and idiosyncratic as a writer, but u acted like a toad in the well. u could not come out of your own dream world and write. “Ethnocentric” is the right term to define you or is it “egocentric”? u should ve considered a second thought before using that word, if not, u should ve admitted your mistake and appologised to the mass u ve offended in a real manner, but u r bragging around, and that’s pretty preposterous (laughs at u)…
you go to any corner around the world, u would not find any person of mongoloid/oriental origin who would not be offended by this word, except those who just laugh it away to impress people around them, fakes! this is a word of a RACIST, which u ve portrayed to be one. you ve given yourself an image of a racist here to the onlookers, i dont know what ur real feelings are like. niggers, giver indians, chinky……etc, these are real racist’s words. there are plenty of words (find in the dictionary if u are weak in vocab) other than the one u used, which would convey your feelings in a better way but u decided upon this particular C word, and it tells us about u.
priyanka, u ve failed to convince urself, forget about convincing your readers, on top of that u r being argumentative rather than admitting your mistake…….correct urself and appologise, its not putting u down anywhere or better forget about starting over as a writer again. u r a big blot, that your fraternity would find unacceptable. be honest and accountable to urself and ur profession. YOUR IMPRESSION IS OF A RACIST TO US AND YOU ARE THE ONE RESPONSIBLE TO IT, NOT US…….all the best!!

priyanka, may be u r trying hard to brush the things under the carpet and do a cosmetic fine art work to cover up your mistakes, which graduated you to the honorary list of failed wannabe writers. but priyanka, i’ve followed the whole course of discussion or you call it the argument. now i want to comment here as a neutral entity. ur good will is well appreciated and acknowledged here, but at the same time u’ve ridiculed urself and ur potentials as so called a writer. first of all u need some serious homeworks to be done. art. 19 of constitution, from where ur liberty of freedom of speech and expression flow (dont be too proud to know) is known to all….but genuine are those people who better understand their duties and responsibilities rather than the rights. and u failed here also. further, for your loosely used “C” word can put into deep shit and u ve failed to understand here again. u r easily liable to be booked under section 153 A and B of indian penal code, do u realize that? u tried to be catchy and idiosyncratic as a writer, but u acted like a toad in the well. u could not come out of your own dream world and write. “Ethnocentric” is the right term to define you or is it “egocentric”? u should ve considered a second thought before using that word, if not, u should ve admitted your mistake and appologised to the mass u ve offended in a real manner, but u r bragging around, and that’s pretty preposterous (laughs at u)…
you go to any corner around the world, u would not find any person of mongoloid/oriental origin who would not be offended by this word, except those who just laugh it away to impress people around them, fakes! this is a word of a RACIST, which u ve portrayed to be one. you ve given yourself an image of a racist here to the onlookers, i dont know what ur real feelings are like. niggers, giver indians, chinky……etc, these are real racist’s words. there are plenty of words (find in the dictionary if u are weak in vocab) other than the one u used, which would convey your feelings in a better way but u decided upon this particular C word, and it tells us about u.
priyanka, u ve failed to convince urself, forget about convincing your readers, on top of that u r being argumentative rather than admitting your mistake…….correct urself and appologise, its not putting u down anywhere or better forget about starting over as a writer again. u r a big blot, that your fraternity would find unacceptable. be honest and accountable to urself and ur profession. YOUR IMPRESSION IS OF A RACIST TO US AND YOU ARE THE ONE RESPONSIBLE TO IT, NOT US…….all the best!! earlier i posted by the name North Eastern but that would be cowardly….just like u guys…so i am posting here again by my own name…

really well written, the worst thing is i cant see any solution to all the problems in india from repression in north eastern to malnutrition etc cause corruption is so pervasive and the indian mentality is all about personal gain, there is no such thing as a collective in india, this is taught from school where kids are taught that you need to get better marks then others etc. The fact that indians have racist tendencies to indians who are not fair shows the base mentatlity that we have, what chance do the north eastern people have – none

Nicely written and quite a few responses (which some are way out of context).. myself being from NE and have stayed in almost all major cities in India, it still amazes me how ignorant people can be even on 21st century, I have come across IIT’s and IIM’s educated people who cant even say how many states are there in NE leave along naming them, imagine Amitabh Bachan tweeting saying a mother from Assam, sadly enough India geography to most people outside from NE seems to think it ends in Assam.
So far as what Mary has achieved, its almost like a fairytale, one to be told for grit, determination and sacrifice that one has to make irrespective of caste, color, ethnicity, nevertheless she has earned our respect and she duly deserved it.
Having said that it don’t mean that all NE people are good and rest of the country are bad, no, there is always 2 sides on a coin. I suppose this discussion was on how Indian political system applies double standard based on their fancy assumptions without understanding what it means and what ground realities are.
Though i want to ask all, do you know what AFSPA is and how it works ? why is this not applied in West Bengal or Andra Pradesh ?

Thank you. That’s the crux, isn’t it? We *don’t* know exactly what the AFSPA is, there are no broad public discussions on it and similar legislation in the mainstream media, and people from Bengal westwards simply aren’t interested. A great deal of information is out there, but while one can walk a reluctant horse to the water, one cannot make it drink.

AFSPA is not applied in ap or wb bcuz they are a part of “India” But ppl like Priyanka Nandy think NE is not a part of india, even if we bring them medals. Such a sad day fro the likes of Mary Kom, to see their contribution to the country belittled in this way. Ppl like this blogger should kill themselves. They will be doing the world a great favor. At least they should never have kids bcuz they will pass on their poisonous beliefs to them. Who cares if 100s of ne ppl die?? Who cares if the c word has been banned by sc?? Ignorant assholes like this blogger will continue to detract India’s progress. Great going…!! Mere Bharat Mahaan. Due to ppl like Priyanka Nandy, im ashamed to call myself an Indian.

Foremost… any self-respecting journalist or columnist knows that they should not be using derogatory term themselves even if it is to make a point… no white journalist uses the term “n****” while referring to a black person… even if the journalist could be writing an article against racism…. Guess Ms. Priyanka needs to learn that first… Moreover no white journalist even during the days of racism in America ever dared to write “USA’s ‘N*****’ route to olympic glory”…. such a shame our Indians feel no such qualms and despite the fact that the supreme court has banned the use of the term “Ch****” some writers like you sneak in the term in the guise of writing something supportive about us

We Indians are by our very nature cynical… but some like you transcend that and go on to become what is popularly known as a “hypocrite”…. see I am not calling you a “hypocrite”… but saying that, given the nature of your article, some might call the author of this kind of write up a “hypocrite.”

I disgaree completely, Upendra. And I find it a little disturbing that you cite white American jouranlists alone as our ethical reference points. Isn’t your own objection to the word valid enough? Why do you need the support of these invisible, far-off people you don’t even know?

About why I disagree. I think making certain words taboo is a cheap political trick that we shouldn’t fall for. It first oversensitises people, then soothes them, and thus tries to con them into thinking their problems have been solved, without actually solving them. A policy consultant to the government of India once told me that circulars were passed ordering all officials to refer to poor Indian farmers as “Kisaan bhai” — ‘our farmer brothers’ — in all public meetings. This made most of the low-caste poor farmers, who had never been addressed with such respect by the ‘babus’, very happy. However, when the officials returned to Delhi, they told their boss that the sweet-talking had calmed ‘those motherfucking donkeys’, and the boss wouldn’t have to worry about them for some time. It’s a pretty good summary of the truth behind such taboos.

On a secondary note, apart from the implied rudeness, why would you object to ‘chinky’ as a description? Are you ashamed of your features? Instead of running around trying to shut idiots up, don’t you think it would be great if you could take the power to hurt away from the racist bastards? Why will you let them make you feel like your face is not good enough? To hell with that. Unless, of course, you agree with them.

Oh just fuck off u ugly bitch!! And when i say ugly, i mean you are ugly inside, as a person. You will never get any happiness in your life, Never. Why are you so miserable, bitch?? Whats up your ass, is your father or brother beating you?? LOL. Rabindra nath tagore’s family members have been left abandoned in Banaras (widows) Maybe your mother is one of them too. LOL.

Wow… that’s awesome… so you mean to say that we should not object to someone calling us “Chinky” because our features are such???? hahahahahaha…. Woman you have it all twisted and upside down.. Do you even know where the word “Chinky” originated from? It is a derogatory term that was coined against the Japanese by the Americans after Pearl Harbour in WW-II… if someone called you “Maach Bhat” or “Machyer Bazaar – if there was a group of you” would you not object? or would you be proud of your Maach eating habit and accept the derogation.

Moreover for us… its people like you… yourself… whom you have referred to as “racist bastards”… because you think its cool to call someone what their feature is… and the audacity of the matter is you wonder why people like us “get upset” over such derogation.

There is nothing wrong in accepting the good practices from everywhere in the world… the Americans quoted Gandhiji time and again when they were fighting racism… so this time I choose to cite USA’s example because its relevant…

Its people like you who foster racism… just like its impolite and derogatory to call a mochi or chamar – untouchable… its impolite to call us Chinky… hope this gets in your thick head.

I was scrolling up and reading comments and came upon this!
WOW, you took away all my respect that I had of you. I did not like you using the “Chinky” in your heading but this one takes the cake.

You write as though you empathise with us but now you have proved yourself to be not only insensitive but also a complete wannabe who write without any real feelings and understanding of a situation. You have succeeded in creating ripples that’s what you were after, after all.
You just contradicted yourself after asking us, “why would you object to ‘chinky’ as a description? Are you ashamed of your features? Instead of running around trying to shut idiots up, don’t you think it would be great if you could take the power to hurt away from the racist bastards? Why will you let them make you feel like your face is not good enough? To hell with that. Unless, of course, you agree with them.”

Why would you object to ‘chinky’ as a description?
My answer is why would we?! While you are at it, do some study and soul thinking. Try putting yourself in a minority’s shoe who is subjected to ridicules everyday while walking on the road, in the class, at the office, in shops and restaurants, etc.The giggles that follow after, the laughter, the mocking faces….’Chinky’, ‘Ao mao chao’, ‘ching-chong’…etc
It is not about the features any more. It is about racism, mockery, eve teasing and ridiculing another person. “Chinky” is derogatory! Have you not heard about “Mongoloid Syndrome” or “Chinky Syndrome”?! When the entire world objects to the word “Chinky” then who are you asking us, why are we objecting?!!!

Ashamed?
We are in fact more than proud to be mongoloids! We look amazing! Hahahahaha….Look at all the Mongoloid nations….they are hard working, intelligent, they look amazing, have great fashion sense, have lots of talents in all fields, etc. It just happens that we happen to be a minority in a third world country. Looking at the rapid growth of our people in socio-economical-political field, I cannot be but more proud.

Running around….shut idiots up….racist bastard?
So you are asking us to keep mum and not object against atrocities? HAH!!!

Why will you let them make you feel like your face is not good enough?
WHAT?!!! Writings always reflects what’s deep inside. Lady, you have some deep rooted issues yourself. Tck tck tck…
Mind you, this is a question asked by you and it does not in any way reflect what the general mainland people think of our face. Once again ‘Chinky’ is not about the face. Since you have been thinking it is all about the face and showed your ignorance in asking us the questions on the first place, I forgive you.

To hell with that. Unless, of course, you agree with them.
So far you have only been defensive and inflexible when someone tried to object to your using the ‘C’ word. Since I don’t use profanity, I’ve got a better description for you- Ignoramus.

what a terribly negative inference to draw from such a magnificent moment.. everyone faces problems- some less- some more- it doesn’t make them right but that doesnt mean you keep pointing them out at every single instance without ever even lifting a finger to do anything..

What the fuck do you mean ‘Illegal Nepali immigrant’ ? You should have done some research before writing this article.

Now, if you are that sane person, I hope you will correct you mistake.
-> Nepal and India has free border system and Indian are free to go to Nepal and work or vice versa. They don’t require visa. Immigrants are not illegal.

Arjuna Award way back in 2003 (Govt)
Padma Shree Award in 2006 (Govt)
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award in 2009 (Govt)
Sportswoman of the year in 2010 (Sahara Sports Award)
Real Heroes Award in 2008 (CNN IBN & Reliance Ind)
People of the year in 2007 (Limca Book Awards)

All these before the olympics bronze medal, my govt and private entities have recognized her and honored her long before she won a medal, its not my problem that you opened your eyes to Mary Kom now and stop assuming its the same with others.

Now coming to India not knowing about Mary – yes true not many knew abt her but its the same case with others too be it from North,South,West or East India. Did anyone know Abhinav Bindra before he got the medal? Did anyone know Vijendra Singh before he got a medal? Did anyone know Sushil Kumar before he got the medal? Wh are you singling out Mary here!!

Its totally unfair to bring in the NE propaganda here, I agree there are issues with NE etc but to say it in Mary Kom’s context is totally unfair and belittling the govt and private entities who have recognized and honoured her from time to time.

And oh the other thing – what Delhi thinks or imagines in no way equates to what India as a country thinks, there is so much more to the country than just Delhi!

A very immature and poorly written blog I must say, and if this blog was all about creating a buzz to get online hits – congrats you have done a good job!

Yes, Priyanka, Aisha’s a friend from college and that’s how I discovered your old blog. :)

Also, troll-baiting is unnecesary, but I’ve congratulated Aisha on being my lesbian luvah. And haw, aren’t we all embarassed at being outed, because being called a lesbian is the worst thing ever!

Seriously, though, judging by the tenor of the comments, I doubt this troll is even North-eastern. Probably just a fake id created to make North-easterners look idiotic. What an embarassment this creature is. I’ve written, tweeted and argued enough over the use of the “c” word in the past (and might’ve considered doing so again), but there’s no point explaining the obvious to such a troll.

Actually, would you write about the use of the now-banned word? I first began thinking about the politics of making words taboo a few years back, when I realised that it was a superficial, distracting sheen on the policy of maintaining class/cast/race status quo which gave these words their vitriolic meaning in the first place.

its your moral sense of responsibility and moral obligations, which you lack. but it seems you are too proud of your deficiencies to understand others’ feelings too. and that ain’t the greatest character of a writer i guess…..and u ask about banned words?? neither C word is among the band words nor the words mother****r, bahen***d, etc (i m compelled to make u understand this way, i m sorry), so, does it make them usable anywhr? and yes, as per the law of the land u r clearly liable to be booked under section 153A of indian penal code….

Article was an out pour of anger emanating from a different problem i.e NE discrimination. But then that’s how we learn to separate feelings. Nice of you to chose NE discrimination issue, Priyanka. Mary Kom is not the problem here, actually. Its out of context.

As Sandeep mentioned, Mary Kom was recognized even before today(all the awards). It’s just that we never care to know her. Like we never knew Abhinav Bindra and Vijendra Singh. We need to understand people, “sports” in english does not mean cricket!

Again, good point. What Delhi thinks does not matter. Out of 30ish states in India, Delhi is only one state. All these negative comments/opinions expressed are typical of Delhities. Easy to spot.:) I have lived in Delhi for big 5 years and felt the fabric of people there. Totally hollow.
Most of the Delhities have internet access and computers (c.f with rest of the Indians). So they write and shout more. But that does not mean they are the OPINION OF THE COUNTRY. Shut up Delhities. And accept that north-eastern states and people are part of our motherland. Education does not mean having too many qualifications. OK

I am a north Indian. And I have witnessed every word of discrimination against north-eastern Indians which this blog and the subsequent comments mentioned. So, everyone, don’t deny that there is none.

Next is, I don’t understand that why such abusive language is used by “us” in the comments, to explain a point! Is it difficult to be civilized. Why can’t we discuss without bringing regionalism (Bengali, Bihari, etc) in between? And we cry “Australians are racist. Americans are racist!”

I don’t want my kids to grow in this country filled with bad-mouth people who are extremely intolerant, HYPOCRITIC and shallow. Respecting others view point while keeping yours is just IMPOSSIBLE for us.

Very unique line of thinking. But I do not quite agree with the cynical spirit of the blog-post. It is a general knowledge issue and not a state/ national/ regional one, in my honest opinion. Yes, Mary Kom came up through great- hardships, unheard -of by guys and girls of prominent cities, but that makes her the super-hero that she is, the one that captures the imagination of many Indians…and make us feel proud as Indians again. I am aware that the Indian Govt hasn’t yet got themselves to do something about the North-eastern states, as much as they do for Delhi for example…..but then, they haven’t done anything for many other states all around the country similarly. Poverty in some areas of Bengal, Orissa, Bihar & UP are worse than sub-Saharan areas. Most sporting heroes rise against a lot of odds across India, as we do not have a sporting culture and most sportsmen belong to the economically weaker section, which makes their challenge and triumph even greater. Whether India has got anything to do with Mary Kom’s success or not, is a rhetorical issue…an emotional view-point to babble upon. India( Govt of India) has recognized Mary Kom long back and awarded/ encouraged her before most of us could learn about her. General Knowledge, at this age of Prime time TV and Internet is appalling, which is an irony. Even now, many people, including a majority in the North-East region itself, may not know or recognize Mary Kom, which is pity, but that doesn’t stop a champion on his/her way. I wish India becomes a more sports-friendly country. I wish, more people come up and take sports seriously as a career…Mary Kom is just a beginning. Also, I know, we can never be a regimented sports -centered country like China, erstwhile Soviet Union or East Germany…but that is straying away from the debate. But madame, you are being a tad too cynical. It is infinitely better to contribute quietly to the cause you believe in, rather than to ‘babble’ on the Internet, with the pretext of ‘raising general awareness’.

You didn’t have to use the ‘C’ word to make a point. Your punchy heading punches in the wrong places. I am from Arunachal Pradesh.
Why did I feel uneasy reading your article even though you meant well?
Negative references were just too many…illegal Nepali immigrant, domestic help, ethnic jibes, Mongoloid features, low socioeconomic class and a displaced, ‘foreigner’ status tiny poor immigrant woman, rootless and therefore utterly powerless, and can consequently be tossed about at will.
SIGH! Since you represent the ‘thinking’ mainland people of India, it just reflects what people think of us mostly. I am actually quite uneasy thinking about it now…

P.S. We are extremely proud of Mary Kom. She is a hero in true sense. She has broken some major stereotypes in India. First she is a woman boxer which is rare in India, and then she happens to be a mother which is even more rare and she is an oriental representing India which is a proud moment for all of us. She marks our presence in India on an international level.
India needs to address a lot of issues in sports. Mary Kom is still in good hands. I recently download 2008 Beijing Olympics NBC US version and it was embarrassing to hear the commentators say how India being the second largest populated nation in the world has no good infrastructure in sports so we have very less participants.

Did you realise, after you posted this comment, that the entire section that you quoted — the one that made you uneasy — was Mary Kom’s description of how people on Delhi streets saw her, and not my opinion of Mary? I am amazed you made this ‘mistake’, because I was exceptionally clear on the point.
(If you like, you can read Mary’s original interview in “India’s Shot at Gold” by Rahul Bhattacharyya, which I’ve linked to in my post above).

Having cleared that little thing up, my question is this: You said those quoted words showed that I was a secret racist who hates North-Eastern India. But now that you know those are Mary’s words, are you going to say she is a racist too, one who hates her own community?

No, right? Because that would be silly. So please explain to me, calmly, if you please, how reporting the racial and classist slurs Mary suffered in Delhi makes the reporter a racist? Or are you saying we should not report these incidents at all, and let the people who harass citizens from the North East carry on? I hope you’re not saying that.

” You said those quoted words showed that I was a secret racist who hates North-Eastern India. But now that you know those are Mary’s words, are you going to say she is a racist too, one who hates her own community?

No, right? Because that would be silly. So please explain to me, calmly, if you please, how reporting the racial and classist slurs Mary suffered in Delhi makes the reporter a racist? Or are you saying we should not report these incidents at all, and let the people who harass citizens from the North East carry on? I hope you’re not saying that.”

Forgiven. Nice try. Now being sarcastic won’t earn you any brownie.
There’s a proverb in my tribe- translation- “drawing water from a dry well/ dried river”.
Since you are the only person who is capable of a rational and reasonable thinking, I don’t need to explain it to you.
You don’t have to look for argument all the time where there is none to begin with.
Take your anger else where. I am not ‘ne power’. OMG!!!

Yes, I am the same person. I changed my name three times.
I didn’t make any mistakes in my reading. You read my comment with a different meaning and replied with the same gist. Try reading the comment once again and cross check your question that follows.
You asked me, “You said those quoted words showed that I was a secret racist who hates North-Eastern India.”
I am actually surprised since you (try to) come across as an intelligent and sensible writer, you read too much into it and even drew your own meaning and conclusions of it.
Where and when did I say that you are racist who hates N-E India?! My “WHAT?!!!” is for the same. For a moment I thought you are being delusional but then I thought maybe you are thinking I am ‘ne power’ who might have called you racist at some point but now I believe that’s not the case.

You need an attitude check because you are extremely defensive and read each comment with a pre conceived notion- You presume, assume and draw your own conclusions deviating from the actual comment. In fair mind reread some of the comments by the readers. The reply that you gave doesn’t even fit the comments. A good writer need to be flexible and be open to opinions and ideas from the readers as well.
All I/we did in my/our full right was to object your using the ‘C’ word in your heading. Don’t think that we NE people are stupid who doesn’t understand the nuances of a writing. You wrote well, creatively speaking. It’s just that a writer should be sensible enough and know when not to hurt others’ sentiments using a derogatory term to stress one’s writing. It’s like you are deliberately trying to create sensationalism. This is yellow journalism. Even it wasn’t your objective but so far seeing your extremely defensive replies, you make us doubt your intentions after all.

Incidentally, and quite removed from the Mary Kom/NE India affair, I see you use the word ‘tribe’ quite easily. A lot of people have recently started saying the word ‘tribe’ is demeaning/racist. Would you think ‘tribe’ is insulting/racist if someone not belonging to your community uses it to describe your community? I’d like to know.

I’ve never read oriental race being referred as ‘Chinky’ on books and media but ‘tribe’ is a commonly used term in books, media and Sociology/ Anthropological sturdy. Try challenging the entire language system, not me for it.
Chinky is derogatory. Period.
I take great offence when someone uses the ‘C’ word so casually not when someone calls us tribal.

I came here from a link in FB given by a social worker aunty. I found far so many things not to ignore. What I didn’t like, I put forward my opinions. Now if you stick to being rigid then that’s you. I can’t go on arguing like a little kid with a grown up lady who should know better to be politically correct at her age. A simple sorry and a little editing could do but since you don’t realise the gravity of your mistake, I leave you at it.
You don’t have to turn tables and throw unnecessary words at people to make your stance. It only highlights your weaknesses.

Jesus Christ, girl. Take a few deep breathes and a good look at this exchange. What part of “this question is is not part of the this Mary Kom/NE debate we’re having, I’m genuinely curious” failed register with you?

When one has the urge to repeatedly call someone else ‘angry’, ‘rigid’, ‘inflexible’ and argumentative, I think one should stop and think if the adjectives apply to one’s own self instead.

I hope your social worker aunty had a more open-minded approach to what people have to say.

Unfortunately, as many have pointed out…despite all your good intentions of highlighting NE’s neglect, you have ended up antagonizing their feelings. The stereo-types of NE that you have listed out are unfortunately thanks to the poor mind-set of people like me and you. We cannot afford to move away from the general public ourselves, sit on a high moral ground and judge others……………………………….that doesn’t make us any better. With all due respect to your intentions, your topic heading is very mis-leading and rather insulting to the brothers and sisters from NE, at first glance. When I came across this on my Twitter timeline, I felt mildly revolted and decided to put in my response here. You will need to write another tome to convince them that the original intention was not to insult, but rather defend. Sometimes one needs a little more than just good linguistic skills to convey a message appositely. Regards

I don’t think dismissing people who did actually read the post and responded to it’s actual content, and instead coddling those that just read a few snatches, deliberately misunderstood them and played the race card to indulge their own racism, is in any way the ‘democratic’, sensible or ‘respectful’ response.

Since you are so free with your advice, I would like to return the favour with some of my own: Please don’t condescend to presume that the few people swearing up a racist blue streak here represent “the NE”. You might think you’re being very sensitive and inclusive, but by identifying entire region with the (supposedly) north-eastern commentators here, you’re really implying that “the NE” are a single community of very angry, very emotional people with poor reading comprehension skills.

They are not. Please watch carefully where your smug condescension might take you.

I am sorry if I had sounded condescending in my above post. I appreciate your ‘advises’ :)….let me explain……my intention was not to garner appreciation of our North-eastern brothers and sisters visiting this blog or the sundry abusive trolls. I came here on my own, following a post on my Twitter timeline. Our posts on the Internet are not limited to our closed-groups or friends-lists anyway and they can reach people beyond our recognition. I don’t think there is anything wrong in being ‘inclusive’, after all, that is our real intention…….and neither is there anything wrong in addressing a zone as ‘NE’, as it is a fact that the North-Eastern states( NE) by and large have been ignored by the central Govt of India……and it didn’t help that the people were never very vocal about it.
Thanks for your advice…I shall certainly watch ‘where my smug condescension might take me’…….and you too watch that your subtle nuances are not lost in translation ………………..otherwise, it will come down to plain abuses, as you can see above :)

Race card? No one played it. We are objecting to your using the “C” word in the heading.
If you are talking about one troll, then don’t even feed to him/her. They don’t represent anyone but themselves.
“… few people swearing up a racist blue streak…you’re really implying that “the NE” are a single community of very angry, very emotional people with poor reading comprehension skills.” Now, please do not dig too much into Subrata Chatterjee’s comment and draw your own conclusions.
Like Subrata Chatterjee said, you have succeeded in hurting us, even with whatever good intentions you have had.
It’s not (Mr?) (Miss ?) Subrata Chatterjee who is smug, it is you who is sounding elitist so far. It would be nice if you understand where you fall are rewrite your heading.

Bitch has anyone from your state ever won any medal in olympics..? your guy in tt couldnt even make it to semi finals was defeated by koreans and chinese. SO ORIENTAL PPL ARE MUCH MORE SUPERIOR THAN YOUR RACE, GET THAT?? Bengali ppl like you are ineffectual HIJRAS AND EUNUCHS WHO cant do anything except Bitch and Moan about other ppl. Now go fuck yourself!! Fucking Bangladeshi illiterate woman!!

You know, I do want to write about the c-word and the ban on it, since my standpoint differs from yours in several ways and you’ve offered me another way to think about it.
I have a big fat exam coming up, one that I’m completely unprepared for, and am completely snowed under with work. But might just sit down and argue it out one day.

There is a short piece on my blog, in response to someone using that word offensively, casuallyy, before the ban in their blog- and I talk about my reasons for taking offense in a bit more detail in the comments. My twitter feed’s locked, so most of my responses to the ban are unavailable online. But I probably will sit and write about it in more depth later.

(Of course, trolls are always free to misread my post and make what they will of it.)

I’d say get the exam out of the way — and all the best for that! — and then maybe we can coordinate a two-sides-of-the-coin sort of a post? I have a feeling, given the shallowness of social media debates, most people will assume we’re sworn enemies and pick ‘teams’ to side with. But, c’est l’internet.

@ Priyanka,
Your question #1: Incidentally, and quite removed from the Mary Kom/NE India affair, I see you use the word ‘tribe’ quite easily. A lot of people have recently started saying the word ‘tribe’ is demeaning/racist. Would you think ‘tribe’ is insulting/racist if someone not belonging to your community uses it to describe your community? I’d like to know.

Question # 2: Jesus Christ, girl. Take a few deep breathes and a good look at this exchange. What part of “this question is is not part of the this Mary Kom/NE debate we’re having, I’m genuinely curious” failed register with you?

When one has the urge to repeatedly call someone else ‘angry’, ‘rigid’, ‘inflexible’ and argumentative, I think one should stop and think if the adjectives apply to one’s own self instead.

I hope your social worker aunty had a more open-minded approach to what people have to say.———————————————————————————–

Can you even co-relate your own questions? Such contradicting statements!
Like I said, you have a talent to turn tables. Very cleverly you try to deviate away from the actual point that is your usage of the ‘C’ word in your heading.
Is this what all you have?
Your only defence mechanism?
You don’t even grasp the meaning of anyone’s comments and draw your own meaning out of it.

You are a failed writer. Period!
You used a derogatory term in your heading to make it catchy. Cheap!
You have failed to get your intentions/ message across.
You have failed North-Eastern people. Mary Kom won’t be happy either.
You have failed in keeping a open and flexible mind as a writer.
You fight with your readers even when there is no fire to begin with.
The actual thing is, we object to you using the ‘C’ word but look how cleverly you are trying to change the topic by saying, “…quite removed from and then asking what part of this…”.
You have also failed in reasoning capabilities so far.

“I hope your social worker aunty had a more open-minded approach to what people have to say.-”
Open-minded approach to what people have to say!….Hahahahahahahahahahahaha…. Epic!

It is possible to reason only with a reasonable person with you and you have a knack to change the entire flow of the comments/ questions so I can only imagine what may follow. One can’t reason with a drunk person and you are brimming with self righteousness.

This blog uses the banned word Chinky which is derogatory to a large community of people in India. She uses it in the headline of the post and refuses to apologize for it. Please shut down this blog. If you dont I will take out a court order against her and your company wordpress for racism and discrimination to minority groups charges. I dont care what your policy is, if you are functioning in india, you have to follow the nation’s rules!! or be ready for a lawsuit against you.

IM FILING A COURT CASE AGAINST THIS BLOGGER. SHE WILL SOON BE BEHIND BARS. I REQUEST ALL PEOPLE BELONGING TO NORTH EAST INDIA TO SUPPORT ME IN THIS ENDEAVOR. WE MUST NOT LET RACIST PEOPLE LIKE THESE TO INSULT US AND GET AWAY SO FREELY.

priyanka, may be u r trying hard to brush the things under the carpet and do a cosmetic fine art work to cover up your mistakes, which graduated you to the honorary list of failed wannabe writers. but priyanka, i’ve followed the whole course of discussion or you call it the argument. now i want to comment here as a neutral entity. ur good will is well appreciated and acknowledged here, but at the same time u’ve ridiculed urself and ur potentials as so called a writer. first of all u need some serious homeworks to be done. art. 19 of constitution, from where ur liberty of freedom of speech and expression flow (dont be too proud to know) is known to all….but genuine are those people who better understand their duties and responsibilities rather than the rights. and u failed here also. further, for your loosely used “C” word can put into deep shit and u ve failed to understand here again. u r easily liable to be booked under section 153 A and B of indian penal code, do u realize that? u tried to be catchy and idiosyncratic as a writer, but u acted like a toad in the well. u could not come out of your own dream world and write. “Ethnocentric” is the right term to define you or is it “egocentric”? u should ve considered a second thought before using that word, if not, u should ve admitted your mistake and appologised to the mass u ve offended in a real manner, but u r bragging around, and that’s pretty preposterous (laughs at u)…
you go to any corner around the world, u would not find any person of mongoloid/oriental origin who would not be offended by this word, except those who just laugh it away to impress people around them, fakes! this is a word of a RACIST, which u ve portrayed to be one. you ve given yourself an image of a racist here to the onlookers, i dont know what ur real feelings are like. niggers, giver indians, chinky……etc, these are real racist’s words. there are plenty of words (find in the dictionary if u are weak in vocab) other than the one u used, which would convey your feelings in a better way but u decided upon this particular C word, and it tells us about u.
priyanka, u ve failed to convince urself, forget about convincing your readers, on top of that u r being argumentative rather than admitting your mistake…….correct urself and appologise, its not putting u down anywhere or better forget about starting over as a writer again. u r a big blot, that your fraternity would find unacceptable. be honest and accountable to urself and ur profession. YOUR IMPRESSION IS OF A RACIST TO US AND YOU ARE THE ONE RESPONSIBLE TO IT, NOT US…….all the best!!

This blogger uses the banned word Chinky which is derogatory to a large community of people in India. She uses it in the headline of the post and refuses to apologize for it. Please shut down this blog. Please take out a court order against her and the company wordpress for racism and discrimination to minority groups charges.

She is clearly liable to be booked under section 153A of the indian penal code as the word is banned in india by the supreme court. I ask you, if the word can be used so freely by people in India then what is the point of the court order against it?

Please arrest this racist woman and put her behind bars. Otherwise i would think that minority groups will never get justice in this country.

“Blogger who used the term ’chinky’ behind bars”.
(Let us assume Reporter X writes the story on this on TOI.)

Now an application of NE Power logic by the learned lawkeepers like police and judiciary sees Reporter X and Editor of TOI behind bars.
But WHY?

*scratch scratch*

Hey they used the term ‘chinky; while reporting!

With TOI down, Hindu now decides to do a story on this case of sheer bad luck of the Reporter X and TOI editor.

“Reporter X and TOI kicked around for using the C word while writing story on Blogger P booked under NEPower-Icannotunderstandsimplepassage-Act”

Guess what happens? Reporter Y of Hindu and Hindu editor are booked under the same law! Unwittingly, they had used the C word as well!

Moral is:

And if you have survived this circular logic (i am sorry i crashlanded against yours) and if your head has stopped spinning (it was intentional, sorry again)

A WORD IS UNDERSTOOD AGAINST ITS CONTEXT.

(Apologies, I had to shout)

Sure you know, that \’nigger\’ is an offensive word in US and can land you in prison. However if you are a nigger and call your nigger friend a nigger, your niggerness creates the context and keeps it outside of the ambit of an offense. I suggest you read the piece carefully and learn the context. Of course if you are happier trolling, do continue. This has been my most entertaining chai break so far.

On a serious note I suspect you are part of the chest thumping uber nationalistic india brigade. Of course you make an amazing troll! That is evidence enough, no? Jai Hind! Mera Bharat Mahan!

The problem is Priyanka didn’t deliberately try to offend any of us. What she wrote just didn’t come across as nicely as she imagined it to be. She could have written her article with a different heading. The ‘C’ word is not only unnecessary but it starts with a negativeness. Also the first paragraph of the article has a lot of negative references which I/we are not comfortable with but as she is ‘reporting’ she may report without hurting our feelings. Her article not only borderlines with yellow journalism but also it leaves a bad after-taste.

When pointed out initially, all she could do is a little editing. Instead she is extremely defensive about it that we have to doubt her intentions after all. Also she draws her own negative meaning out of people’s comments to the point of becoming delusional and imagining things even not even said by people (at least very obvious to her reply to my original first comment).
Funny thing is if we ‘Chinky’ people are objecting to her usage of the ‘C’ word, then why should she become agitated and not pull it down and be nice about it?!

Funny, I don’t find her use of the ‘chinky’ word HERE offensive and I have noted that there are many including friends from NE who did not find it offensive. So I think it is best not to get into an my NE pride is better than your NE pride debate, is it not? I am sure you and maybe 20 others who find the use of the word here (note i say use of the word here and not ‘the word’) offensive maybe suitably balanced by an equal number of NE friends if not more who find it not the least offensive.

I will tell you why I don’t find it offensive:

The use of the word is deliberate and not the least unintentional. It is a deliberate attempt at framing the discrimination faced by NE people in mainland India and reading the sudden nationalist surge re Mary Kom in mainland India into it. How is it sought to be done? By the signifier of discrimination–the term ‘chinky’. To me the heading reads something like this– a deeply insulated mainland india that cares not a hoot for what happens in north east and freely indulge in atypical racist slurs like ‘chinky’ is suddenly called upon to celebrate mary kom. And celebrate mary kom they must, for she has done them, the mainland india, the sons of aryans proud. Do understand that this India does not care that she has also put Manipur on the olympic map. The use of the word, hence is to signify the hypocrisy surrounding the quintessential proud indian’s celebrations.

As far as the stereotypes she has used, those are to reinforce the way many in mainland India perceive people from the NE, because the author has deliberately used the lens through which a standard dilliwallah, UPwallah, bangalan, punjaban see a person from the north east.

I actually feel it is quite a lame exercise to engage (with) someone in reading comprehension lessons.

AND

“Funny thing is if we ‘Chinky’ people are objecting to her usage of the ‘C’ word, then why should she become agitated and not pull it down and be nice about it?!”

Funny thing why you should think that you represent the entire north east or the ‘chinky’ people? This is exactly the kind of reasoning provided by any fundamentalist–from the Hindutva brigade to Islamist radicals to rabid jingoists–all for the sake of a horse shoe nail.

I also note that there have been several threats about how she should kill herself (abetting suicide is still a crime the last time i checked) besides the verbal tirade that is continuing. From my very basic understanding of law, a very good case can be made out of threat and intimidation as well as outraging the modesty of a woman. Cyber crime bureaus sometime work wonders. Recently, a group of Hindu fundamentalists had openly threatened Meena Kandaswamy on twitter (regarding her comments on beef festival in Osmania University) that she should be gand raped and the same should be televised. One person’s IP was tracked and chargesheet has been filed, to the best of my knowledge.

All this disagreeing and dissenting are cool good people. But name calling, threats are not very cool babalogs. Some offense are quicker to land you in jail while we discuss and debate if use of the word ‘chinky’ was in proper context or not.

Since when did “We Chinky” become NE pride?!!!
You are confusing a lot many things…. You forget there are Nepalis and even Chinese Indians and also those East Asian students and foreigners in India apart from the people from North-East.

Soul Train, please stop attacking people just for the sake of it and for once, try and understand what they are trying to say. JS is saying that this post has two types of commentators from North Eastern India: those who liked it, and those who thought it insulting.

Those who liked it don’t want this post changed in any way. Those who didn’t like it want it edited. So who do I listen to?

Priyanka, in what way did I attack her? Now even trying to explain one’s views is regarded as attacking. If our opinions doesn’t match, it doesn’t mean that we are attacking one another. You don’t live it, you won’t get the trauma of the taunt. Since JS and you belong to the same camp, you both will never understand what it is like to live in India as minorities.
Like, I stress again, you wrote well but it left a bitter after-taste. It didn’t feel right. Starting from my first post I wrote to you in civil manner but you went over jumpy with everything and started concluding things yourself. Whatever comments followed were for the same.
You could have acted with some maturity and played safe and edited your heading on the first place….
See, Indians when abroad also go through racial discrimination and if they read a heading like, “Indian’s ‘Curry’ Route to Olympic Glory” or “Indian’s ‘Bong’s’ Route to Olympic Glory” etc, one is bound to feel bad however good the intentions maybe. Some people who are more sensitive than the rest are bound to retaliate…
As a writer, it is up to you to keep an open mind or not.

Soul Train, I lived abroad for a few years with a very racist housemate, so I am well aware how being a minority and the object of irrational hatred. This person used to refer to me as the “filthy brownie” and tell me my skin was the colour of shit, and sometimes asked my landlord to let the police know a possible ‘terrorist’ was living in his house. But that’s not the point.

I’m trying to have a conversation with you because you genuinely sound like you’re open to the possibility of discussion, but even though you urge me and certain other commentators here to be open minded, you seem surprisingly resistent to being open-minded yourself about these two specific questions:

1. The title and first paragraph of this post, which is taken from Mary Kom’s owninterview-piece called “India’s shot at gold”, reports the insults Mary suffered. You say a more sensitive report should have left out the actual insulting words, because they hurt the feelings of certain communities.

OK, let us say I do leave them out. I just say, “Mary Kom was treated like an outsider in Delhi streets, which made her feel very bad”. Don’t you think that is being very unfair to Mary? She wants people to know exactly how she was insulted, which is why she mentioned them in an interview. What right do we have to edit what she herself said?

2. There are two groups of readers from the North East on this post. Some of them have liked the post and shared it on social media. They understand that the insults North Eastern Indians face should be talked about, not suppressed, if attitudes towards the North East are to change for the better.

However, the other group think that I should not have quoted these actual insults. They don’t agree that to realising the extent of people’s racism is the first step towards changing it. They think I should apologise and change the title and the first paragraph.

Fine. Now here is my problem. Which group’s advice should I take? Should I listen to the first group of North-Eastern readers who liked the post and don’t want it changed, or should I listen to second group and change it? Both groups are from the North-East, so how do I decide who is more authentic (meaning, whose opinion I should accept)?

[For the moment, let us assume I’m giving up my right to my own opinion.]

I understand the points you are making, but do you understand mine? Please think about it for a minute before responding.

Priyanka, If you get to know me, I am open minded and rational about possibilities. I get your points but like I say once again, what didn’t go down well with us is: Your heading! With all your rights, you may write as you please but sadly some articles leave a bad feeling even if the writer didn’t have any such intentions. How do you justify that using “Chinky” in your heading was the only way to get your message across. It hit home wrongly. It could be avoided by all means.
You are lucky, like (Freud) Gandhiji said, one can either face it or avoid it. You faced your racist room-mate for a while and then you could avoid the person after coming here back. Also people/ system around you were cooperative.
What about us, where do we go? This is our country and our people. We either ignore or take a stance. Some of us are doing just that. Normally no one wants trouble and live in peace.
You are still lucky, in few days time, people will forget this…and here you have an article with 165 comments…. Even the law made it illegal to address ‘Chinky/ Chinki’ for a person from North-East (you did it in your heading if not in your article), who cares. The law hardly works for the marginalised people… I am only getting older and in time I will also become a mere spectator and another young person will start protesting but again that person will get tired… What else…
It is a democratic country which gives freedom of speech and expression. Another writer will come along and write a great piece of article using the “Chinky” word. Some us won’t even bat an eyelid because we have no where to go, why give ourselves unnecessary trouble but some of us will still protest…. Life goes on…

Sadly, I agree with your general pessimistic outlook about the state of the nation. You see how people from the NE are excluded, I see how tribal and dark-skinned lower-caste people are excluded, as a woman I personally feel threatened all the time I step out of my house, and these things probably won’t change. I’ll get older, when I read about the Police Chief saying a woman wearing a sleeveless top was responsible for her own rape I will probably not protest any more. India apparently is the worst country to be a woman in in 2012.

But I am just saddened that you think using a banned word within quotation marks is the same as using it directly. And that you don’t think that to make this country more inclusive, we have to first face its ugly sectarianism, not hide from it because ‘it hurts our feelings’.

If our aim is to protect our feelings by not discussing our problems openly and in full detail, we will never be able to solve them.

Anyway. It’s been nice knowing you. I wish I knew where you properly blogged, so I could learn about your thoughts and ideas.

@JS, Soul Train and Priyanka- Can I butt in and offer my two paise worth?

JS- Thank you for being patient enough to explain the question of context and the use of the word. I wouldn’t have been that patient and logical in your place.

@Soul Train- I agree with you insofar as you replied to Priyanka in one of the comments about how objecting to the c-word does not mean we are ashamed of our appearance or ethnic origins: it simply means that we will not allow others to abuse us/make fun of us on those terms.

Now let me ask you exactly what offended you so much about Priyanka’s use of the c-word and the descriptions of how most of mainstream India sees someone like Mary Kom -*most of which came from Rahul Bhattacharya’s long essay on Mary Kom*.

If, instead of Nepali immigrant worker etcetera, this description had incorporated the other list of “Chinky cliches”- “westernised”, “pub-hopping” “chhote kapde pehenne wali” etcetera, would you have considered it a more complimentary, less racist description? I went to a pretty well-known South Delhi college for my undergrad, and let me tell you, most of the North-eastern/Bhutanese/Tibetan/Sikkimese/Nepali women of my acquaintance had to deal with this from their own peer-group and it was not a flattering experience.

Both these extreme cliches are part of the wholesale Othering that people who look like us go through, but if Priyanka is describing them in order to comment on the sudden appropriation of Mary Kom as a symbol of Indian womanhood/national pride, does this make Priyanka a racist? Especially when what she is saying (as I read it) is that Mary Kom’s success is of her own making, despite the numerous systemic hurdles that she faces; and also that the Indian state cannot use her success as an excuse to pretend that all is well with its treatment of this region and its people.

I have a long history of objecting to people using this word casually and indiscriminately. I have gotten on my soapbox in front of friends and strangers alike and explained to them, patiently and painfully elaborately, exactly why it is so offensive. To give my friends credit, they have also stopped using it, no matter how casually, because it offends the rest of us. I cannot comment on other people being okay with their friends jokingly calling them chinky, but i usually do not stay friends with people who use that word after I’ve explained my objection to it.

Why did I use it in my post’s title, then? To comment on the food-shaming racism of the other blogger. To draw attention to what she was doing in her post, and highlight how offensive it was.

This was before the ban was in place, but since the ban is against the word being used about someone belonging to the SC/ST categories, the funny thing is that as per the argument that some people have been making- I, as a slant-eyed Ahom, am as liable for prosecution as Priyanka is.

It’s not spamming if you’re making a very good point very well. Thank you so much for the food shaming post. As it happens, I have a half-written post about the much-mocked eating habits of ‘East Bengal’ folks who flooded what is now West Bengal after partition, and then again after the 1970s. Perhaps it’s time to finish it.

Incidentally, I absolutely do NOT advocate accepting an established derogratory term. If I did, I wouldn’t have made such a big deal out of Mary Kom being called certain names in Delhi. But I do very strongly suggest finding out the history behind this word becoming a taboo. Often, I find that banning a particular word is a roundabout way for further Othering a group from the mainstream. Let’s face it: How many people are actually booked under the relevant sections accurately? Very few. But the law becomes a focal point of racist hatred, of the “The majority is now left with no rights! The minorities are taking our freedom of speech away! Our democracy/sovereignity/independence is under attack!” kind.

So yes, I am suspicious about the cause (or manipulated effect) behind such bills/laws. And I don’t think too highly of people who jump on the bandwagon before thinking about it for a minute. Creating a straw-person and beating her to a pulp may be satisfying, but it doesn’t actually help the root cause: ethnic bullying.

What you black indians can do??? black, filthy, dirtiest…..There’s no race like black indians in this world, who is shit. I should say, Mahatma gandhi was thrown out of the train, and what they (british) did was right….

You compete China in every possible way but i will say, never ever compete China, if they want they will be able to take over whole India only in 7 days!! But they wnt because u people were untouchable to them! Even you can not compete the north east people in sports you dirty indians.

I guess Miss Priyanka is realy jealous of da Queen of the Ring Mary Kom… Gal let me tell u sumtnk, u dnt deserve to speak about her and NE, i guess you don’t have any job so you start this thing to kill your time eh..!!Let me tell ya wat to do go to the street and sold ur ass dat will be lot more better for you…

i’m from the northeast, and i’m deeply saddened to say this blogger was a junior of mine at university. further saddened to see compatriots from my department defending this moron. hilarious, seriously. and very disturbing.

If you are genuinely from my department, kuhak — an assertion I greatly doubt, given that you carefully hide your online identity, unlike me — then I’m very sorry to see in you a culmination of everything we were taught not to be; to wit, mindless sheep steered by a mass-culture of frenzied, keyword-powered pop politics. From your easy name-calling and profession of sadness (and amusement), you clearly haven’t retained even the basics of reading comprehension, which, if you did indeed get into JUDE, I imagine you mastered in middle-school. And hence you’ve been reduced to a rather pathetic spectacle of utter incomprehension, and misdirected outrage.

What have we learnt in our years, if we are still so easily led by the nose by a divisive culture of deliberately stupid political correctness? The sure road to self-destruction, I imagine. My sympathies to you.

shut the fuck up, dipshit. here’s what it looks like. your attempt to make a political statement at the end falls flat because it is simplistic and ill-informed. the attempt to talk about ‘indian womanhood’ is similarly ham-handed. so whatever delusions of narrative sophistication you’re suffering from, it’s all moot – the big bold writing on the wall you’re blind to is that your post-title and the way you have framed these prejudices is racist, which you are fucking incomprehensibly blind to despite about 50 people pointing it out to you. what is this, an attempt to garner blog traffic? why you bloody idiot, why don’t you acknowledge you’ve made a mistake, if you’re truly as well-intentioned as you claim to be? in any case, you suspiciously sound like somebody who’s assumed a non-racist position for rhetoric’s sake just to peddle your racist prejudices in disguise. you’re lucky i’m not encountering you in real life, you’d get a kick on your backside to send you careening from the ledge into the jheel and that would be bloody that. enough time spent on you, frankly, more writing would just be feeding into your attention-hungry masochism. i hope some august soul comes along and hacks your pathetic site to oblivion, which is where it deserves to be.

i don’t know… my mind has been vitiated all day from the venom on this page (to which i have now added), much like it was when i first discovered this post a couple of days back. i now wish i hadn’t. very few things make me this angry. my apologies for the abusive language in my previous comment. you need to understand these are very emotionally charged words to use, whatever be the context. it clouds the judgment, and so you have these exaggerated reactions. it is patronising and elitist to assume that everyone here who has reacted with anger belongs to some ‘lowest common denominator’, to whom even the term has to be explained with a link.

anyway, i do not wish to participate in this discussion any more. as someone above has pointed out, the trauma is not something that can be rationalised, and those who attempt to do so (and find the anger here mystifying), simply betray their lack of empathy. it comes across as cold-blooded and cynical, even as you think you are simply defending your opinion in argumentative terms (though you have let yourself go a few times by resorting to ad hominem attacks).

i wish you the best in your endeavours, which seem well-intentioned enough — just that it would probably be for the best if you were a bit more careful in considering the affective power (intended and unintended) your vocabular choices might have.